1956 NCAA skiing championships

The 1956 NCAA Skiing Championships were contested in Winter Park, Colorado at the third annual NCAA-sanctioned ski tournament to determine the individual and team national champions of men's collegiate alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, and ski jumping in the United States.[1][2][3][4]

1956 NCAA Skiing Championships
Tournament information
SportCollege skiing
LocationColorado Winter Park, Colorado
DatesMarch 23–25, 1956
AdministratorNCAA
Host(s)Colorado, Denver
Venue(s)Winter Park Ski Area
Teams13
Number of
events
4 (7 titles)
Final positions
ChampionsDenver (3rd title)
1st runners-upDartmouth
2nd runners-upMiddlebury
← 1955
1957 →

Led by coach Willy Schaeffler, co-host Denver claimed their third national championship in as many years, with Dartmouth repeating as the runner-up in the team standings.[5]

Repeat individual champions were Dartmouth's Chiharu Igaya (Alpine, Slalom), Denver's Willis Olson (Jumping, third consecutive), and Idaho's Eirik Berggren (Nordic). Less than two months earlier, Igaya was the silver medalist in slalom at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.

Venue

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Winter
Park
 
 
Winter Park

This year's championships were held March 23–25 in Colorado at Winter Park, west of Denver.[6]

The third edition, these were the first NCAA championships in Colorado and the Rocky Mountains.

Team scoring

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Rank Team Points
  Denver 582.01
  Dartmouth 541.77
  Middlebury 541.28
4 Western State (CO) 531.58
5 Idaho 528.63
6 Colorado 520.62
7 Utah 504.61
8 Washington 502.25
9 Vermont 473.51
10 Washington State 472.67
11 Wyoming 470.15
12 Michigan Tech 446.99
13 California 389.63
Source:[5]

Individual events

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Four events were held, which yielded seven individual titles.

  • Friday: Slalom
  • Saturday: Downhill, Cross Country
  • Sunday: Jumping [2][6]
Event Champion
Skier Team Time/Score
Alpine   Chiharu Igaya (2) Dartmouth 3:02.0
Cross Country   Eirik Berggren Idaho 58:27.8
Downhill Walt Taulbee Washington 1:30.6
Jumping Willis Olson (3) Denver 220.8
Nordic   Eirik Berggren (2) Idaho 7:21.2
Skimeister John Cress Denver 369.23
Slalom   Chiharu Igaya (2) Dartmouth 2:07.8
Source:[1][2][3][4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "NCAA Skiing Championships Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "NCAA ski tourney opens; Idaho among favored trio". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 23, 1956. p. 16.
  3. ^ a b "Igaya wins slalom; Cougar skiers sixth". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 24, 1956. p. 12.
  4. ^ a b "Vandals, UW capture wins in NCAA ski". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 25, 1956. p. 1, sports.
  5. ^ a b "Denver NCAA ski champ; Vandal individuals sparkle". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 26, 1956. p. 12.
  6. ^ a b "NCAA ski championships begin at Winter Park". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). United Press. March 23, 1956. p. B6.

39°53′13″N 105°45′47″W / 39.887°N 105.763°W / 39.887; -105.763